Many residential homes and commercial buildings have one or more ceiling fans installed in one or more rooms. Typically, ceiling fans are selectively operable to rotate at variable rotational speeds and directions, to provide a desired level of cooling and/or air circulation within a room or building. As is generally known, a ceiling fan typically includes a motor and a plurality of blades. The motor may be installed within a housing that may be adapted to mount to the ceiling, either substantially flush therewith or slightly below the ceiling surface. In either case, the plurality of blades extend perpendicularly from the housing, and are rotated by the motor to provide the previously-mentioned enhanced cooling and/or air circulation.
As many homeowners and building maintenance personnel are aware, during ceiling fan operation, dust and other airborne particulate are drawn into the fan. A portion of the dust and particulate may be circulated with the air, and another portion may accumulate on the ceiling fan blades. This accumulated dust and particulate can, after a period time, become unsightly. Thus, the fan blades may need periodic cleaning to remove the accumulated dust and particulate. This can be a time-consuming task. Moreover, depending on the height and mounting arrangement of the fan, this can also be potentially hazardous for the person conducting the task. The dust and particulate that is present in the air can also be a health nuisance.
Hence, there is a need for a device that can substantially eliminate accumulated dust and particulate on ceiling fan blades, or at least lessen the periodicity at which accumulated dust and particulate on ceiling fans blades needs to be removed. There is also a need for a device that can passively remove dust and particulate from the air. The present invention addresses at least these needs.